Candidate Bridgewater: a ‘bully pulpit’ for Utah businesses

Should Tim Bridgewater be elected to the Senate in November, he envisions using the position as, according to Bridgewater, a "bully pulpit" for Utah business.

Bridgewater, a Republican businessman seeking his party’s nomination for the November ballot, said in an interview the state is a unique setting for corporate conferences, and Utah offers energy at a lower cost than elsewhere and the state has a strong work force.

The Park City area, he said, is an example of a place that provides the quality of life Utah offers. Bridgewater, who grew up in the South Summit community of Francis, said the federal government can assist in boosting business by not intruding.

He said Washington needs to leave the free-enterprise system alone. If that does not occur, he said, more economic troubles could loom.

Bridgewater wants banks to increase their lending and hopes the economy stabilizes, which he said will spur investment. He said federal-level discussions about overhauling the healthcare system have pressed against the economy.

"What we need is a stable economic environment," Bridgewater said.

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Meanwhile, Bridgewater charged that Washington is ignoring what he sees as the federal government’s role in stemming the number of people entering the U.S. illegally. He wants the American borders secured, including finishing a fence along part of the U.S.-Mexico border and expanding the number of border patrols. Bridgewater wants Washington to remove incentives that spur illegal crossings, such as, perhaps, in health care and employment opportunities.

Bridgewater wants the U.S. to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, with the candidate saying "the sooner, the better, in my opinion."

"We need to give Afghanistan a chance to stabilize," he said, acknowledging that there could be American soldiers in the country a few more years.

He supports military leaders in their plan to reduce the number of soldiers in Iraq.

Bridgewater, in another campaign plank, said he does not want nuclear waste from foreign countries brought to Utah for disposal.